Always Remember
by bb.pezberry
Summary: AU; Monica and Rachel's relationship has always been something along the lines of special. What Monica has never decided to reveal though are her true feelings for Rachel. Monica x Rachel
1. Prologue

**Always Remember**

Prologue

_Monica Geller was always proud of the quality of air she served. At the tender age of five, tea parties were a very critical part of a child's social life. It was nice for a change seeing girls her age surrounding her and most importantly it was rather lovely to have some attention for once. Of course she secretly felt bad for having to kick out Mr. Bear from the party, but room had to be made for her new friends._

_Friends. It was a term young Monica was only starting to learn to grasp. Sure, she had her older brother but she could hardly call him her friend. He just – he was just Ross, her older brother who would occasionally play dress up with her and make her swear not to tell their parents that he had put on his mother's lipstick. Now though, after her mother had gone out of her way to invite the neighbour's children over to play, Monica had a chance for true friendship._

_They were all so excited to be there. They admired the pretty tea set and smiled as they sipped the nothingness from the cups. They all seemed to know each other at least a little and always beamed when Monica would refill their cups. However, aside from a casual hello or, you have a pretty dress, no one really spoke to Monica or made an effort for a much deeper conversation. Although at that age, conversations never really went too far._

_That was until another little girl ran towards them, huffing and puffing from exhaustion, "Sorry I'm so late! My daddy got caught up with some doctor business, I hope that's okay?"_

"_That's fine, come take a seat!" Monica liked the look of this girl very much. It was easy to say that she was the prettiest out of all her guests. She fashioned a cute pink headband and matching sundress and her smile just seemed so much more inviting than the rest of the girls._

_As the tea party went on, the girls made idle chit-chat with each other. Monica was focused on cleaning an imaginary stain when the late girl tapped her shoulder._

"_You're Monica, right?" although her nose seemed a bit larger than what Monica was used to, the other girl had a very pretty face. "I'm Rachel Green! Sorry I didn't tell you my name earlier, you looked busy with making sure everyone's cups were filled."_

"_I have to be a good hostess, right?" Rachel giggled at Monica's statement which made her smile even wider, "I hope you like my party."_

_Rachel nodded furiously, "Best tea ever!"_

Monica shook her head from the dream she was having. Strange, it had been an entire year before she dreamt about her childhood like that. She was only 14 now but that seemed so long ago.

She looked down at her lap to try to remember what she had been doing previously, "The photo album? Oh yeah, for the collage due tomorrow." She was a little surprised at herself, Monica had never left an assignment for the day before but this one managed to slip her mind. She had a little breakdown earlier upon remembering the assignment and well, now she's here.

As she organized her materials, she gazed thoughtfully at the old pictures of herself and Rachel. Ever since that first tea party the two had been inseparable and even into their first year of high school, things haven't really changed.

Except maybe…Monica hated to admit it but she was never that great in keeping friends. It was especially hard when she became more overweight and kids started to tease her. She was able to keep a few close friends but she was nothing like Rachel. They were only a few months into their first year of high school and Rachel had already attracted so much attention. She would never admit to being jealous, but she was thankful that Rachel never strayed from her side.

Monica sighed as she grabbed a cookie from her nightly plate. She took a bite and shook her head one more time.

"Let's get this show on the road."


	2. Chapter 1

**Always Remember**

Chapter 1: High School Woes

Her morning routines were always the same. She would wake up at 5:30 AM and help her mother make breakfast for the family. It would always alternate between pancakes and fruit with bacon and eggs. And hey, some days they'd just eat cereal. They were a pretty average family. Everyone was up by 6:30 and they all ate together more or less peacefully. Both of her parents were busy getting ready for work and her older brother was also getting ready for school. As always, the night before she had packed all of her homework into her bag so after breakfast she would take a shower and then clean up her room before her parents brought her to school. It was a pretty average morning and Monica always found it enjoyable to make sure everything in her room and her bag was neat and organized. It was comforting to have such a consistent routine.

She would get to school half an hour before it started and once she stepped on the school grounds, her eyes would search for her best friend. Rachel's mornings seemed hectic from what she had told Monica. Rachel would never come at the exact same time every day. Sometime she'd be there earlier than Monica but often time she'd be a little late.

This didn't stop Monica from always taking her time to search for her. But when she couldn't locate Rachel she would just sit at the front of the school near the drive way and wait patiently.

"Waiting for Rachel?" Ross had made his crush on her best friend way too obvious, at least for her taste. Almost every other day he would join her as she waited for Rachel.

"Duh, do you really have to ask me every time you wait with me?" she would ask back, rolling her eyes at her dorky older brother.

He made a face at her before trying to answer coolly, "No, I was just…making sure." Ross flipped his hair and smoothed out his mustache, keeping a blank, not caring facial expression.

Monica loved her older brother but she hated it when he tried to act all suave in front of Rachel. It really just made him look like he was trying too hard. While some of the time she'd find it hilarious, it was too early in the morning to tease him any further. So instead the two sat in silence for the next twenty minutes.

Ross sighed deeply when the other girl didn't show up, "I guess I'll see you later then, Mon." He always left a bit early because he felt it would help his grades to show up ten minutes early for class.

She shrugged and managed a feeble "Goodbye," before he walked into the school building. It was a good thing considering how awkward things would get when he was there when Rachel arrived.

As much as Monica loved her best friend, she hated being late so she got up herself and turned towards the building. She intentionally walked slowly in hopes that Rachel would appear at any second but by the time she got to the door, nothing. Before entering however she heard a loud screech and turned to see a car making its way into the driveway. Her eyes lit up as she wobbled towards the familiar vehicle.

"Thanks Daddy!" Rachel screamed as she waved goodbye to her father. The car left the school as quickly as it arrived and all that's left is a slightly distraught Rachel Green.

"What happened this time?" Monica asked, casually pulling a strand of hair away from Rachel's mouth.

She sighed before answering with a rather agitated tone, "Stupid Jill got her period this morning and we had to wait for her to get over it." Rachel pushed Monica towards the school before continuing, "She was crying on our way to her school and I really wanted her to shut up. Anyway, let's hurry before Mr. Anderson yells at us for being late." Rachel hated it when she would make Monica late. Monica never complained but she knew her best friend well enough to be able to read her face no problem.

The two girls shared every class except for their last one. Luckily enough, they were also put in alphabetical order so Rachel and Monica always ended up sitting next to each other. This was a good thing most of the time, but at other moments, sitting next to Rachel only reminded her of how much everyone liked her more.

In English class while they were taking up homework, Monica was always ready with her answers. Although she wasn't always correct, her enthusiasm never died down. Her teachers always admired this but the students, well, there was a reason why there were spit wads in Monica's hair.

Rachel would glare at the bullies every once in a while, but glaring never really made them stop. As much as it bothered Monica that she had to deal with such bone heads, it made her feel extra special whenever Rachel would stand up for her. She was never enough to make it stop completely but as Monica would always say.

"Just four more years, just four more years of this and I'm out of here." She would whisper to herself every day in every class. She would never cry, she would never admit that it bothered her, that it tortured her late at night every once in a while. She would shrug it off like it's nothing because she was strong, she could handle it.

It's not like she wasn't used to being picked on anyway. It happened at home too. Her mother would pick her on everything; her parents in general would pay more attention to Ross. But she would always tell herself that it was just a phase and that she was bigger than them.

"Hey Mon, you okay?" Rachel would always check on her too, gazing at her with those big eyes. The concern was always genuine, not the way she was with her other friends. This feeling that Rachel gave her was one of the biggest reasons she could bounce back up from her lows.

"Yeah," she would reply, giving Rachel a smile. She would smile back and things just seemed okay again.

At lunch Monica met up with her other friends. This was the only other time she was separated from Rachel because she would always eat out with her other friends. Monica on the other hand enjoyed the lunch her mother made while sitting in the cafeteria with her friends from elementary school and band. They weren't incredibly close but it made her happy that she had people to talk to.

And then last period arrived and it was the worst part of Monica's day. She sat at the back because apparently she blocked the view of her classmates and back there her teacher couldn't hear her so she couldn't participate that well in class. Instead, she would spend this time doing her homework or thinking about her future. Anything to distract her from the stupid comments on her hair or her weight or clothing choice.

When the bell signifying that school had finished rang, Monica made her way to Rachel's final period and waited to greet her at the door.

"Hey Monica!" she would exclaim happily, opening her arms for Monica to walk into. Today Monica didn't have band practice so she and Rachel would walk home.

This was the best part of her day because it took about an hour to walk home but they do it anyway just for the sake of hanging out. And, of course it was her mother's idea so she could lose some weight. It hasn't really helped but Monica never cared about that. Her weight was never a problem because the people that mattered didn't care about that, it didn't matter because Rachel still thought she was beautiful and her family, although teasing, still loved her.

"I can't believe how much homework I have," Rachel groaned as she dragged her herself across the sidewalk.

Monica just laughed, "What are you even talking about? You never do your work anyway."

"Hey! I do…some of it," she scratched her head trying to think of the last time she did all of her homework. She shook her head instead, "Just because I don't spend three hours on my homework like some people doesn't mean I don't do anything."

Monica slapped Rachel's shoulder playfully, "I'd rather be a geek than have those heart attacks you have before every single test."

The grin on Monica's face was never wider at any other point of her day.

By the time Monica's home, Ross's stuff is scattered all over the floor. She rolled her eyes and continued her usual routine of yelling at him to clean it up, him refusing and her cleaning up his mess and eventually everything else that felt out of place in sight. It's not that their house was always in a mess or anything but Monica didn't feel comfortable unless everything felt right to her even if it wasn't particularly messy.

"Mom, Dad! I'm home!" she called out as she finished. Monica wandered into the kitchen after they responded with their usual "Hello Harmonica!" and looked through the fridge and pantry for anything to eat. She snacked for about an hour as usual then proceeded to clean her dishes. With a soft smile she brought her stuff with her upstairs and proceeded to start her homework.

Yeah, just another day for Monica Geller.


End file.
